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Monthly Archives: October 2013

In the Americas, there is but a single species of carnivorous butterfly. Unlike other American butterflies whose larvae feed on plants, caterpillars of the Harvester (Feniseca tarquinius) feed only on wooly aphids! Living wooly aphids! Throughout the range of the Harvester in eastern North America, various species of wooly aphids are utilized for food. Here in peninsular Florida, just one species of wooly aphid is used, Neoprociphilus aceris, an aphid that feeds uniquely on spiny greenbrier (Smilax) vines.

The caterpillars are small, slug-like creatures that frequently feed in groups. Locally, It is common to see several caterpillars together, working their way along a greenbrier vine, chomping down all the aphids as they go.

Amazingly, the aphids make no attempt to flee from the approaching caterpillars, instead, they just wait to be the next one to be eaten! Here is what it looks like as a Harvester caterpillar tears into an unsuspecting aphid:

In many parts of the range of the Harvester, the caterpillars are myrmecophilous (that is, actively tended by ants), but I’ve never noticed ants tending Harvester larvae in Florida. What’s cooler? Harvester caterpillars produce acoustical signals, the purpose of which remains largely unknown.

So, all of this is pretty amazing! But it gets better. The pupae have been described in the literature, for over a century, as as resembling a monkey’s face. I’m not sure I necessarily see a monkey’s face in the pupa, but I definitely see a face!

Harvester adults are delicate-looking butterflies that remain close to aphid populations. They are most active in the afternoon, and males guard perches in the canopy where they await passing females. These perches are usually 2-4 meters above ground-level, but occasionally, lower perches will be utilized. Today I got lucky, and found this male Harvester guarding a perch at eye-level, allowing me to get some photos:

After loving grasshoppers as a kid, then subsequently paying them little attention, I’ve fallen back in love with grasshoppers! Probably the main reason grasshoppers have returned to the top of my list of favorite insects is due to a great book that enables me to identify virtually all of the species in Florida, where I’ve been living since 2006. Easy access to species-specific information always makes learning a new group more fun and rewarding, and I thank Dr. Capinera for paving the way for me!

For the past few months, I’ve attempted to photograph most of the grasshopper species I encounter, as I try to learn them. I’ve found grasshoppers to be incredibly photogenic, and usually not too difficult to sneak up on to photograph with a macro lens (100mm). That is, not too difficult compared to butterflies…

Up until now, I’ve simply tweeted all of my grasshopper photos, in order to share them with anyone interested. In an effort to keep track of which Florida species I’ve photographed, plan trips to photograph missing species, and to archive these photos in a place where they may be more easily accessible, I’ve decided to maintain the following list of Florida grasshopper species, illustrated with my photos, as a blog post. I’ll update this post regularly as I obtain additional photos.

While the Capinera book is by far the best reference for Florida grasshopper species, much new information has been gathered since the book’s publication, and several new taxa have been described. Currently, the most up-to-date list of Florida grasshopper species is maintained by the Mississippi Entomological Museum, listing 94 taxa (88 species + some subspecies) for the state. The list below is taken directly from the Mississippi Entomological Museum’s site, and will be updated as their list is updated.

Yesterday while hiking in the woods of Levy County, Florida, I stumbled upon the coolest spider I have ever found! From a distance, it looked like bird poop, atop a stalk of Florida Paintbrush (Carphephorus corymbosus).

As I got closer, it became apparent that the object was a spider, so being unfamiliar with it, I proceeded to take a few photos. When I reviewed the photos on the display window, I could not believe the faces that jumped out at me!

How many faces do you see on this spider? Using some imagination, I saw 6 faces staring back at me, there in the forest. [At home on my computer screen, I saw even more!] So it seemed that I had found the perfect Halloween spider!

But there are even more faces to be seen on this spider. Here is the head-on view, which reveals additional faces, including its real face!

This is really pretty remarkable! However, as if all these faces weren’t enough, the posterior view of this spider displays one of the most charming faces in all of nature! That’s right, a spider butt shaped like a heart, with lips puckered for a big kiss!

So, it appears that Wagneriana tauricornis is not just for Halloween anymore, but perfect for Valentine’s Day too!